PMB’s $30bn Loan Crucial To Nigeria’s Economy, Says Group

The Buhari Media Organisation (BMO) has said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s $29.9 billion external borrowing request to National Assembly for approval, was in the interest of the country.

Mr. Niyi Akinsiju, Chairman of the Organisation stated in Abuja on Sunday that the funds were necessary in order for the country to bridge the infrastructure gaps.

Further, he affirmed that these gaps were left unattended to by previous administrations in the country.

Akinsiju insisted that if the requests had been fully granted in 2016; Nigerians would have seen more projects at various stages of completion across the country.

“Buhari has made a bold move by sending back the 2016-2018 external borrowing plan to the National Assembly for reconsideration. Nigerians need to know that when the request was rejected by the 8th Assembly; led by former Senate President Bukola Saraki and Speaker Yakubu Dogara in 2016; there was no debate on the merit or demerit of the plan. Just like the President said in the latest request; the lawmakers back then extricated and approved only a few out of the 39 projects the loan was meant for,” he said.

These, he said, included the federal government’s emergency projects for the North East; and the Lagos-Ibadan segment of the China Exim Bank railway modernisation project; which were at advanced stages of completion.

According to him, power generation and transmission were also at a higher stage than what the administration met in 2015.

“We invite Nigerians to see how well the loans were used for those projects; in order to know what would have been if Saraki and Dogara had not constituted themselves into a joint stumbling block,” Akinsiju said.

He urged Nigerians critical of the President’s move to have a more positive outlook.

“Aside from the Lagos-Ibadan railway project which is nearly completed; the second Niger Bridge is a good example of a promise that is almost a reality today; even as Nigerians know how previous administrations dithered on it.”

The BMO chairman urged the lawmakers to keep their promise to treat requests from the Executive on merit and give speedy consideration to them.